A Short Convo With… Kid Sister

Music

VIBE: Your original album title was Koko B. Ware wasn’t it?Kid Sister: That was about two years ago. It was Koko B. Ware and then it was Dream Date and then we completely changed the album and decided to change the title as well.

What happened in between then? It was just a completely different aesthetic so I was like, let me just pick something that seems more fitting. It seemed like we were going for more of an electronic feel so if you’re wondering why the album is titled [Ultraviolet], when I was younger I used to go to a teen club called Jubilation and every time you would go in there it was, like, ultraviolet lighting. It was all black-lighted out and as a 13-year-old, I mean that was the most exciting visually stimulating thing I’d ever seen, so I named [the album] that kind of in commemoration as cheesy as that sounds but I’m a cheesy girl.

When “Pro Nails” came out, the big thing was the Kanye cosign. Have you kept that relationship going? It’s always going. Like, I was at the VMAs; I saw him the night before. I said, “What’s going on? How’s it going?” Whenever he’s in town, we do shows, that kind of thing, so yeah. It’s just all part of the musical family that we have so it’s not like it was just a professional collaboration. It’s more of a friendship than a contact.

Did he work on this album? For sure. The whole reason we changed it was because he was like, “Take this off, take this off…” The plan was to take three songs off and put three new songs on, but we ended up taking three songs off and putting five new very great and very strong songs on the album. It’s the whole reason we even started doing that, because of Kanye.

What was your own vision for the album? We decided to take it in a more electronic direction because “Pro Nails,” when it first came out, was the first song of its kind where you hear kind of an electronic beat but you’re listening to hip-hop verses over it be they party verses or whatever, but it’s a rap verse over an electronic beat and that has never been done before really and so we decided to take the one thing that I do well, which is that, and run with it.

A lot of Chicago house-influenced music? Kind of, but it’s more like just picking electronic beats and using them with a hip-hop aesthetic.

You have a track with Cee-Lo called “Daydreaming.” He’s a crazy genius. I know! He is a crazy genius. He’s also a really nice guy. I just got a call one day, like, “Hey, I have a fan of yours.” And I was like, “Hello?” And he was like [imitates Cee-Lo], “Hello Melisa!” [Laughs] Whoa! I didn’t even know who it was. And he’s like, “This is Cee-Lo Green!” I’m like, ‘Oh Lord.’ So it was pretty cool to be able to even speak with him, but to have him want to get on my song was really special. It’s someone that you grow up listening to but I didn’t really Stan out, cause that’s not really my style.

What’s the most exciting thing that’s happened to you in 2009? Oh my God, there’s been so much that happened. The VMAs was really fun. I met a lot of new friends, the album release was great and so many people supporting and calling up. My family getting to see it in stores and [performing on] Late Night With Jimmy Fallon was cool. Everything has been such a whirlwind.

Speaking of the VMAs, what did you think when Kanye crashed the stage? I didn’t realize it was him! And then into it, I was like, “Oh Lord.” I was on Twitter and all I did was tweeted the words “uh” and “oh.” I thought it was kinda funny.

Did you speak to him afterward? No, I’m not gonna be like, “What the hell were you doing?!” [Laughs] I think there was a complete overreaction by America.

Your musical style is fun and upbeat for the most part. Do you think you have a dark album in you? I don’t know. [Laughs] Maybe. I don’t think so, though. I don’t think there’s really a moody bone in my body. Except for certain times of certain weeks. [Laughs] It’s all about just keeping it on an even keel. Keeping chocolate in the house and keeping me happy. –Clover Hope